Court of Appeals Opinions

IMPORTANT NOTICE

Beginning no later than July 1, 2011, the appellate courts will send notices, orders, opinions, and correspondence related to pending cases to attorneys in those cases by e-mail rather than postal mail. All attorneys with pending appellate cases who have not already registered an e-mail address should do so immediately. Unrepresented parties with pending appellate cases may also participate in this e-notification system by registering an e-mail address. Please visit the Clerk of Appellate Courts page for instructions on how to register your e-mail address.

Opinion Policies

Minnesota Court of Appeals opinions are issued weekly and are available to the public at 10 a.m. CST/CDT every Monday.

On Wednesday of every week, the Court of Appeals will mail a notice that informs counsel, pro se parties, and court personnel associated with a case that an opinion will be released the following Monday. Opinions are available online or by visiting the Clerk of Appellate Courts, 305 Minnesota Judicial Center, 25 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, after the Monday release time. Copies of the opinions are mailed to involved parties on Mondays.

In certain time-sensitive cases, the Court of Appeals may issue opinions on a business day other than Monday. In these instances, involved parties will be contacted just prior to the special release.

Published OpinionsBy statute, the Court of Appeals issues a published opinion only in the most important and complex cases. Published opinions include an extensive analysis of the facts and law. They will be considered and used by courts faced with similar issues in the future, and they are published in books found in most law libraries.

DECISIONS OF THE COURT OF APPEALS
FILED Monday, August 14, 2017

A16-1241Kathryn Ward Blum, et al., Appellants, and Thomas Ward, Co-Appellant, vs. Molly Thompson, et al., Respondents,
Richard Ward, Respondent, Kevin Ward, Respondent, Ward Family, Inc., Respondent.
Stearns County District Court, Hon. Frederick L. Grunke.
1. A plaintiff who establishes liability on a claim of breach of fiduciary duty may, in appropriate circumstances, obtain relief in the form of monetary damages.
2. A document that is not an agreement between or among shareholders may be relevant to the reasonable expectations of shareholders in a closely held corporation for purposes of Minnesota Statutes section 302A.751, subdivision 3a.Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded. Judge Matthew E. Johnson.

A16-1421In re the Marriage of: Francis Stephen Gill, petitioner, Respondent, vs. Gretchen Zwakman Gill, Appellant.
Hennepin County District Court, Hon. Patrick D. Robben.
When the marital interest in a business entity is sold and includes, as part of the sale price, a provision for “earn-out” payments based on future company performance, the earn-out payments are marital property, notwithstanding purchaser’s employment of one of the spouses under a separate employment agreement during the “earn-out” period.Reversed and remanded. Judge John R. Rodenberg.

A16-1482State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. Tommy James Edwards, Appellant.St. Louis County District Court, Hon. Sally L. Tarnowski.
When determining whether a juvenile’s conviction following certification for adult prosecution in another state should properly be included in an offender’s Minnesota criminal history score, a district court does not violate an offender’s constitutional right to a sentencing jury trial when it compares the Minnesota statute with that of the certifying state to decide whether the juvenile would have been certified as an adult under Minnesota law.Affirmed. Judge John R. Rodenberg.

A17-0130 State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. Shawn Michael Provost, Appellant.Meeker County District Court, Hon. Michael J. Thompson.
A sentence based on an incorrect criminal history score is an illegal sentence subject to correction under Minnesota Rule of Criminal Procedure 27.03, subdivision 9, even if the sentence would still be within the presumptive sentencing guidelines range when calculated with the correct criminal history score.Reversed and remanded. Judge Carol A. Hooten.

Unpublished OpinionsUnpublished opinions are issued in cases that are less complicated, that involve legal issues that have already been decided in published opinions, or that will affect only the parties to that particular case. These opinions are usually shorter, do not contain extensive discussion of the facts, and are not generally relied on by other courts to the same degree as published opinions.

4. A17-0134
In the Matter of: Loan Group I of the trusteeship created by Option One Mortgage
Acceptance Corporation relating to the issuance of certificates by Option One Mortgage
Loan Trust 2006-3 pursuant to a Pooling and Servicing Agreement dated as of October
1, 2006.
Affirmed. Judge Randolph W. Peterson.
Hennepin County District Court, Hon. Elizabeth V. Cutter.